Record Reviews

KRYSTYNA STANKO ~ EURODYKA STM 009 (Barcode: 5906489287343) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2023 Released: 2023 This is the 11th album by Polish Jazz vocalist / songwriter Krystyna StankoFind albums by this artist, recorded with a fabulous team of old and new friends, which include vibraphonist Dominik BukowskiFind albums by this artist, bass guitarist Paul RutschkaFind albums by this artist, bassist Michal BakFind albums by this artist and drummer / percussionist Mikolaj StankoFind albums by this artist. Norwegian trumpeter Arve HenriksenFind albums by this artist guests on three tracks, which he also arranged. Other guests include Portuguese vocalists Joao de SousaFind albums by this artist, Ukrainian vocalist Laura MartiFind albums by this artist and Hungarian clarinetist Daniel MesterFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten tracks, four composed by Stanko, one co-composed with Bukowski, four composed by Bukowski and finally one composed by Rutschka. Stanko also wrote all the lyrics for the vocal tracks, in two cases co-written by her vocal partners. The album continues a strong shift towards Jazz-World Fusion, with familiar Latin undercurrents, and even more remarkably towards vocalese, which is featured extensively on most of the tracks, to my personal delight. Since each of the songs is dedicated to a different European city, and combined with the album’s title, this is an obvious tribute to the European Culture, without any geographic / political boundaries, emphasizing the vast diversity on one hand and the common ground, on the other, which generates such a wonderful congruence. The music is perfectly suited for the purpose of the message, and amalgamates many Folkloristic influences, all wonderfully intertwined within the Jazz envelope. As already stated earlier, Stanko choses to sing a brilliant wordless vocalese as much as possible, which overcomes any linguistic barriers, and even when she does sing in Polish, the phrasing and musicality fits the universal aura of the music perfectly. Bukowski, who is a faithful musical partner of Stanko since many years, leaves a distinct mark of his ingenious musicality on the album, but all the participants contribute wonderfully, to create a serene but deeply cutting aesthetic experience, which this music generates. I have been following Stanko since the beginning of her career and her remarkable ability to re-invent herself time after time, intelligently, gently and lovingly is absolutely marvelous. This album is built from an infinite number is little moments, sounds, notes and silences, woven carefully by Stanko and her team, like only she can. She has never disappointed my sensitive musical taste buds, and this album certainly fits perfectly my feelings of respect and adoration for her many talents, as much as her personality. Overall, this is another highly successful, tasteful, sensitive and remarkable achievement by Stanko, who in many ways is a class of her own on the Polish / European vocal Jazz scene. This music is so universal, that any language barriers become completely meaningless and this music should be highly appealing to and Jazz lover on this planet and perhaps the whole Universe. Love you, as always!

Updated: 23/03/2024Posted: 23/03/2024

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KRYSTYNA STANKO ~ POCIAG DO PIOSENKI NOT ON LABEL ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Pop Fusion Recorded: 2018 Released: 2019 This is an "informal" album by Polish vocalist / songwriter Krystyna StankoFind albums by this artist, her overall tenth release, which was recorded live in Radio Gdansk. The album celebrates the third Anniversary of the Metropolitan train system connecting the Baltic Tricity with the Kaszubia region. Stanko is accompanied by a quintet of excellent young musicians, which include: keyboardist Arek KrawielFind albums by this artist, guitarist Boris MogilevskiFind albums by this artist, violinist Jan GalachFind albums by this artist, bassist Paul RutschkaFind albums by this artist and drummer Mikolaj StankoFind albums by this artist. The album presents twelve songs, all written (music and lyrics) by Stanko, which originate from her early recordings: the album "KobietyFind albums with this title" released under the For DeeFind albums by this artist moniker in 1995 and her fourth album (first album as a leader) "Uslysz MnieFind albums with this title" released in 2008. The informal, relaxed atmosphere of this live concert suits this material ideally, which is only marginally Jazz oriented, but is absolutely delightful from start to finish. These invigorated versions of the early songs by Stanko sound in many respects way better than the original versions, missing perhaps the naivety and youthfulness, but are enhanced by the maturity and experience gained over the years. The music is mostly kept in a Jazz-Rock Fusion mood, but without excessive instrumental soloing, concentrating on the melodies and the vocal parts. Stanko´s delivery is absolutely delightful, as expected, which makes listening to this album an absolute unadulterated pleasure. The decision to revisit the old songs was a very smart move, as they all prove to stand the test of time admirably, and are definitely worth being remembered. Overall this is a very enjoyable piece of Pop / Jazz music, excellently performed and full of great music, which should make the many fans of Stanko´s talents very happy indeed!

Updated: 04/04/2019Posted: 04/04/2019

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FILIP ZOLTOWSKI ~ HUMANITY STM 008 (Barcode: 5903684231812) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2021 Released: 2021 This is the debut album by young Polish Jazz trumpeter Filip ZoltowskiFind albums by this artist recorded in a quartet setting with saxophonist Szymon ZawodnyFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Wojciech WojdaFind albums by this artist and drummer Mikolaj StankoFind albums by this artist. Vocalist Natalia Capelik-MuiangaFind albums by this artist guests on one track. The album presents eight original compositions, all by the leader. The music is typical Modern European Jazz, which incorporates various elements of Fusion and Ambient music, but stays mostly on the traditional path of Jazz improvisation on the themes conceived by the leader. The bass-less instrumentation and dominating keyboard sound offer a contemporary, youthful feel to the music, but the synthesized bass sound can be really daunting, especially being way too high in the mix. The music is often more interesting rhythmically, with odd meters and changing tempi, than melodically. The sound quality of the recording is somewhat murky and dark, which to some extent damages the entire ambience and the balance between the instruments. The compositions are often soaked in typical Polish melancholy and at times linger slightly too slowly, trying the listener’s patience. But all four young musicians are obviously well schooled and technically proficient enough to offer a pleasant musical experience. The leader’s trumpet sound is somewhat hesitant, but the saxophonist plays excellently all the way. The keyboards are, as already stated, too dominant and busy. The drummer, being alone in charge of the rhythmic flow of the music, does a remarkable job. Overall, this is an interesting effort, which was perhaps recorded slightly too early and might have benefited from a little more playing experience and conceptual maturity, but as it stands it definitely shows a lot of potential. Definitely worth investigation!

Updated: 07/01/2022Posted: 07/01/2022

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